[Grammar] A or the: preposition confusion

[Joe333]

Sentence: "Health reform bill is the/a last nail in the coffin of democracy"

My question/doubt: I'm not sure what preposition (the or a) I should use in this sentence: "....the/a last nail" ?

Thanks

 

[2006]

Another way of deciding which article to use is that there is only one last nail. So it is the last nail.

 

[ianhood]

We might also note that the words "a" and "the" are not prepositions. "a" is the indefinite article; "the" is the definite article. Prepositions are words like to, for, with etc.

 

[Linguist__]

We might also note that the words "a" and "the" are not prepositions. "a" is the indefinite article; "the" is the definite article. Prepositions are words like to, for, with etc.

Well spotted! This is my fourth visit to this thread and I hadn't realised the discrepency.